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Individuals With Disabilities As Parents And Their Earliest Connections To Systems Of Support, Mary Clare Schuh

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to better understand the experiences of individuals with disabilities as parents, and the variables influencing the referral processes used by pre and postnatal care professionals to connect parents with disabilities to systems of family support. This process was examined through the experiences, beliefs, and attitudes of pre and postnatal care professionals as well as through the experiences and perspectives of parents with disabilities. Research objectives included both an increased understanding of the relationship between parents with disabilities and their earliest connections to systems of support and policy and practice recommendations for pre and postnatal …

Breaking The Norm: Family Characteristics Associated With The Avoidance Of Corporal Punishment, Wendy Ann Walsh

Doctoral Dissertations

Corporal punishment (CP) is an acceptable and frequently used discipline tactic, with 94% of parents of 2- to 4-year-olds using it (Straus, 2001). Much of the parenting literature indicates that there are more positive ways to discipline a child (May, 2000; Sears & Sears, 1995; Spock & Parker, 1998). Yet, only a minority of parents raise children without CP.

Using Belsky's (1984) model of parenting, this study analyzed the 1985 National Family Violence Survey to compare this minority group of parents with those who use CP in order to understand the experiences and context associated with avoiding it. The extent …

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: Making Change In Early Head Start, Patrice W. Hallock

Doctoral Dissertations

This is a field study of families and home visitors in Early Head Start. Its purpose is to understand the social context of infants born into poverty and to understand the home visiting relationship when families receive intervention services from home visitors who are socially and economically different. Two questions were posed: First, how do socially and economically diverse families perceive infant well-being? Second, what is the experience of families who participate in Early Head Start? The study used interviews, participant observation, and cultural interpretation to understand the perspective of participant families.

The study provided evidence that economically and socially …